Last Monday I really pushed myself and noticed some important issues relating to my body and how I run. I first started out with 4 miles at lunch on the treadmill; they were warm up kind of miles, just getting into the groove of things. After work I did 2 miles on the treadmill, more energized and trying to quickly squeeze them in before a 6pm Abs Class.
When I got to the Abs Class the instructor was running late (10 mins late for a 30 minutes class?? Ridiculous and unprofessional) so I stepped in and took over. Thankfully I just added some pump-up songs to my iPod the night before, because I have not updated my music on there since 2008.
The Abs class went well, although I was pulling stuff out of my memory and not prepared at all, I made it work and gave the class a great work out. I even got applause at the end of class (which means you know it was good)! I talked to the manager at the gym to let him know I had to sub on the spot because the normal instructor never showed up (which isn’t the first time that has happened), and I wasn’t mad/mean about subbing last minute, but it looks bad for them, and is unfair for gym members to wait around for a class.
After that whole thing, I was really pumped up and ran another 4 miles on the treadmill really quickly. I noticed my right knee was started to get sore, mostly because I have been bad about stretching before and after my runs. I wasn’t aiming to do 10 miles that day, planning on 8 total, but when you’re on the go, why stop?
It’s like in basketball when a player has a hot hand, give them the ball to score! Don’t stop that momentum. My senior year of high school we won the championship in basketball in our division (no big deal), and every time the other team would call a time out our coach would say “it’s because they are scared and are trying to interrupt our momentum.” Which was completely true! And true for workouts as well; just because you may think you need an “easy” workout one day and turns out your body wants to do more than you planned, go for it! Being flexible and able to improvise is the name of the game for fitness and life in general. Don’t get too hung up about “schedules” and pre-planned workouts (but I’ll go into that for another post- the importance of improvisation).
I ended up having to walk another few miles because the metro had issues and wasn’t moving anytime soon (thank you Red Line), and by the time I got home my right leg was sore and tired. I ate a banana but knew the next day was going to be rough.
Without fail, I had lactic acid buildup in my right calf and my knee was sore. Luckily I had enough bananas, coconut water and a heating pad to help ease the pain throughout the day. I was “scheduled” to run 3 miles that day but decided against it. Smart decision, right??
I went to my normal Pilates class at lunchtime, but we got a new instructor since TR left, the sub was a yoga teacher that focused a lot on ab work. My abs were a little sore from the class before, but not unbearable. And it was a great class with lots of stretching, something I definitely needed.
What I noticed from that workout day is that:
A. I need to spend more time stretching and warming up my body before I start running
B. It’s ok to start slow, because I will have plenty of time/miles to make up for it
C. There’s no need to sell myself short!
D. Take proper care to how my body is feeling, when I need an easy day- take it! (especially after a really hard day)
